Beijing Traffic Pilot Program Results Mixed

"A recent traffic restriction that limited driving in China’s capital city during the four-day “Good Luck Beijing” Olympic test games initially resulted in a measurable improvement in the city’s haze, according to Beijing officials. But over the full period of the restriction, air pollution levels in fact showed a slight increase, The Washington Post reported. Zhao Yue, vice director of the Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau, noted on the agency’s Web site that humid, windless conditions had trapped particulate matter in the city, preventing greater improvement.

Under the restriction, effective August 17 to 20, car owners with license plates ending in an even number were permitted to drive only on even-numbered dates, and vice versa. The partial ban resulted in the removal of hundreds of thousands of cars from Beijing’s streets each day. Violators of the ruling were subjected to a fine equivalent to US$15 and required to return home with their vehicles.

On the first day of the restriction, Beijing’s air quality improved from the previous day’s “Level 3” rating (slightly polluted) to a “Level 2” rating (fairly good), People’s Daily reported. But the index of particulate matter was ultimately higher on Day 4 than on Day 1. Even so, the Day 4 index, at 95–100, was better than the index of 116 measured the day before the partial ban began. On the final day of the restriction, Beijing’s skies remained hazy."